WAG Centralized or decentralized national programs

[Natalia]

France is the land of centralized power.

Our national gymnastics program is a reflection of this.
Gymnasts that show a certain potential are invited to national training centers around 10 years of age.If they wish ,they can then attend THE national training center in Paris at the age of 13.

The passage from primery school to secondary school also occurs at around 10 years of age,and girls enter that wonderfull moment of being a pre teen.During this challenging moment in their lives they are expected to pack up their things ,move away from their families and come home on week ends .They attend special schools that allow them to continue with their training.

French gymnastics results on an international level are dismal .

I know centralized systems work,but perhaps they're not so effective in a privileged society.We, the french, are extremly privileged,and rather lazy.Sports is suppose to be enjoyable or there's no point to it.Many parents simply don't agree with the idea of sending their 10 year olds away from home for the sake of a sport,even if the kid is begging and pleading to go.

When a girl goes off to one of these "pôle",the points she obtains at competitions are awarded to her club for 2 years.This is to encourage local coaches to "hand over "their gymnasts.

But the coach/athlete dynamic that allowed that young girl to progress is interupted,and the coach isn't really allowed to follow his athlete through every aspect of her journey.

I wonder if a more decentralized system would allow more participation at a grass root level,more gymnasts would go on to higher levels and the depth of talent would increase.

I guess it would be more a matter of My gymnastic,My coach,My club,My progress,rather then being shuffled around by a "system"

 

[Iwannabemargo]

I remember the last time I watched a programme on French TV they were lamenting their lack of success on the international stage and I know they were comparing France with the UK, sporting wise as we are comparable population wise.

The only thing they seem really good at producing internationally are tennis players, archers and Fencers !

I wonder if it is the system.

I was discussing with OH the other day about P&F and he asked me what we would do if she won a scholarship to somewhere like Milfield ( Top private sports school). Its about 180 miles from home. I said I couldn't send her, he said why not, I said I didn't have children to send them away.

If there was a facility nearby I would extend her day, but I would want her home with me every night.

 

[Natalia]

Other DD is an archer,she's not going anywhere lol,but the career of an archer is a lot longer then that of a gymnast,no need to "get'em young".

France is defenitly not sporty,and a sport that encroaches on academic pursuits is a bit of a lost cause I'm afraid.

We are also a nation afraid of effort,unless it's working ourselves into existentialist angst,then we have boundless enegy.

 

[2G1B]

I know that for my family, if it meant sending them away at 10, my kids would NOT be pursuing that path. My twins are 9.5 and there is just no way that in just half a year I'd be OK with them going off to school. I might consider boarding school for high school if they really wanted it; but that is when they are 14. A 10 year old, IMO, is too young to be away from their family for that long!

 

[iluvgym]

Funny you post this now, I was just reading the other day that they have realized that the 100% centralized system doesn't work in France and they are going to return to decentralized/semi centralized system similar to the USA and Australia. This way the coach has motivation to push for a high level because they have the chance to keep their athletes. Why work so hard if they are only going to be taken away? On paper it works but in real life it doesn't.

 

[Iwannabemargo]

there are pros and cons, but I think as has been stated, the fact the athletes are so young makes a big difference.

In the UK we have had great success in cycling by centralising the training at the National training centre, but all the cyclists we are talking about are young adults, 18+, at an age when they would be off to College anyway.

 

[Aussie_coach]

Wha so have a fairly centralized program in Australia. Kids on the pathway to elite train and compete in a whole separate levels system. They either train at the Australian institute of sport or at their state institute of sport, a few clubs are also offering the elite program now.

But their progress is all controlled by the national coach.

We need a system like this as we have a population of 20 million and not 300 million like the US. We just don't have the population to sustain elite training centres all over the country, we also don't have the expertise in coaching, so we need to pool Those resources.

The other advantage is that the elite training centres can be funded,